Presently, endoscopic procedures such as arthroscopic surgery, in which a minimum of cutting is done to obtain access to the diseased or injured tissue, are widely employed. Generally, by keeping the amount of cutting to a minimum, the recuperation time may be substantially reduced. In such procedures, access to the problematical area is achieved through small incisions which are just large enough to permit the insertion of a fiber optic bundle connected to a T.V. camera for viewing the procedure, a tube for bathing the area with saline solution and an elongated tubular cutting instrument for cutting the tissue in question and removing the tissue by aspiration through the inner channel of the instrument. Generally such tubular cutting instruments comprise an inner tubular member which is positioned in and rotatable in an outer, concentric, elongated, tubular member at speeds of about 1000 to 3500 revolutions per minute. The elongated concentric tubes are usually about three to ten inches in length and the diameter of the outside tube is usually less than about 0.25 inch. The inner tubular member has a cutting edge disposed at its distal end which coincides with a corresponding opening in the distal end of the outer tubular member which (opening) provides the cutting edge with access to the tissue to be excised and co-operates with the cutting edge in carrying out the excision. The severed tissue is removed by bathing the area with a saline solution which is removed by aspiration through the inner tubular member. In order to provide aspiration and rotation, the proximal end of the inner tubular member is fixedly attached in the axial bore of a shaft member, usually molded from plastic which is provided with (1) a lateral bore for connecting the axial bore to an aspiratory chamber which can be positioned around the shaft and (2) coupling means for connecting the shaft to an electric motor which provides the rotational drive. In turn, the proximal end of the outer tubular member is fixedly attached in the axial bore of a handle member, also usually molded from plastic, in which the axial bore thereof opens into an enlarged axial cylindrical chamber for receiving and facilitating the rotation of the shaft to which the inner tubular member is joined. In order for the surgeon to position the cutting edge precisely at a particular site, the inner tubular member and the outer tubular member should have the least space between them commensurate with the ability for the inner tube to freely rotate at high speeds. Usually, a clearance of 0.0005 inch to 0.001 inch is provided. Typically the tubes are produced in a deep drawing process from sheet material of stainless steels such as those from the 300-series. Commercially produced tubes typically are not perfectly uniform with regard to concentricity, straightness and surface roughness. The manufacturers of arthroscopic surgical instruments have tried to compensate for such defects by procedures such as centerless grinding, precision straightening and honing and lapping of the tubular surfaces as well as application of lubricants such as silicones. Such procedures improve the performance in the early phases of the operation of the surgical instrument. However, after a few seconds of operation, problems related to metal-on-metal wear begin to occur thus hampering the smooth operation of the instrument. The rubbing of one stainless steel surface against another results in the production of metallic wear debris which can deposit in the incision site resulting in metal contamination, possible damage to the tissue and slow recovery or even failure of the procedure. Another problem with the production of these stainless steel particles is that they in turn cause further wear and scoring of the rotating surfaces that may lead to seizure and failure of the instrument. The current invention is concerned with overcoming such problems and providing improved tubular cutting instruments.